LARAMIE – Shae Suiaunoa planned to wait until after the 2023 season was complete to decide whether to use his extra year of eligibility for one final ride with the Cowboys.

Then on Dec. 6, Wyoming announced that Craig Bohl was retiring after 10 seasons leading the program and Jay Sawvel would be replacing him as head coach.

Suiaunoa was sold on the sixth season.

"When we had that meeting before the bowl and Coach Bohl announced that he was retiring, when he brought Coach Sawvel down I was like, 'I'm definitely coming back,'" Suiaunoa said. "Coach Sawvel, I love playing for him. I like him a lot as a coach and a person. I had to come back."

With Easton Gibbs opting to leave his extra year of eligibility on the table to prepare for this month's NFL Draft, Suiaunoa is the next man up at middle linebacker after starting the past two seasons on the weak side.

Logan Wilson and Chad Muma set the recent standard of excellence at the position before Gibbs carried it on by piling up 230 tackles during his two seasons in the role.

"I know the people that came before, so I'm trying to carry on the tradition," Suiaunoa said. "At the end of the day, I'm just out there playing football. Even though I've got some more responsibility on me, I asked for that and I want that. I'm ready."

New defensive coordinator Aaron Bohl helped develop Wilson (Cincinnati Bengals) and Muma (Jacksonville Jaguars) into NFL players. Gibbs attended the NFL Scouting Combine in February and improved his draft stock with a strong Pro Day in March.

Like his talented predecessors, Suiaunoa patiently developed in the program and cam put himself in position to follow their path to the pros with a productive 2024 season.

In 2019, Suiaunoa joined the program after playing quarterback at Clear Lake High School in Houston. He redshirted that season and appeared on special teams in all six games during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, which also did not count as a year of eligibility.

After finishing with four tackles as a backup behind Muma and Gibbs in 2021, Suiaunoa was second on the team in tackles in 2022 (73) and 2023 (93).

"I'm very thankful for him doing that and him trusting us with it," new defensive coordinator Aaron Bohl, who will continue coaching linebackers, said of Suiaunoa's decision to come back as a super senior to lead the unit. "Me and him have been close for a long time."

Suiaunoa was arguably the most improved player on the team last season, boosting his production by 20 total tackles after missing 21 tackles the previous fall.

That leap came after the 6-foot-3, 232-pound Suiaunoa sat out spring practice a year ago to recover from surgery to repair a torn labrum he played through in 2022.

"I think every year that he has been here he has gotten substantially better," Bohl said. "He was a high school quarterback and he'll tell you his freshman year he was terrible. Then he was slightly better, then he got average, then he had a good year, and now I expect him to take another step."

Suiaunoa will try to extend Wyoming streak of producing an all-Mountain West middle linebacker to six seasons with Wilson (2019), Muma (2020, 2021) and Gibbs (2022, 2023) previously receiving the honor.

Two other veteran linebackers, Cole DeMarzo and Connor Shay, are competing for a starting spot after combining for 29 tackles in backup roles last season.
Juniors Micah Young, Read Sunn and Nic Talich add some quality depth to the room.

"Me and Connor talk on and off the field for sure. He even said, 'I'm like in the same position as you two years ago,'" Suiaunoa said of Shay. "If you put your head down and wait it naturally comes. I feel like that's how a lot of people are in this program, just wait your turn and keep working hard. He's excited and I'm excited for him."

Wyoming also added Virginia Military Institute transfer Evan Eller, who posted 235 tackles in 40 games at the FCS level, to push for a starting spot at linebacker after he played a hybrid safety position and linebacker for the Keydets.

"It's kind of funny but when I got switched back to linebacker my junior year at VMI I was just watching different inside linebacker tapes, and I had watched Chad and Logan," Eller said. "That was 2021 when Chad was coming out and I had watched Logan in the NFL. I didn't realize they (both) went to Wyoming until I committed, and I started doing some background research.

"Obviously, the inside linebacker position is highly regarded here, so it was like a great opportunity, and I couldn't turn it down."

Wyoming will conduct its fourth spring practice on Tuesday. This Saturday's 11 a.m. practice will be open to the public following a youth clinic that begins at 10 a.m.

If you are interested in learning more about NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) or would like to support our student-athletes, please visit 1wyo.org. 1WYO was created out of Wyoming's culture of neighbor helping neighbor. The mission is to promote and strengthen local charitable organizations and develop Wyoming student athletes. 

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